Catholicism, Catholic, Traditional Catholicism, Catholic Church


``Where the Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be;
even as where Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church'' Ignatius of Antioch, 1st c. A.D


Feast of
Christ the King






God made promises to Father Abraham and King David. These promises are revealed in Genesis 22:16-18 and II Kings 7:10-19 respectively:

Genesis 22:16-18
By my own self have I sworn, saith the Lord: because thou hast done this thing, and hast not spared thy only begotten son for my sake: I will bless thee, and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand that is by the sea shore: thy seed shall possess the gates of their enemies. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed my voice.

II Kings 7:10-19
And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them, and they shall dwell therein, and shall be disturbed no more: neither shall the children of iniquity afflict them any more as they did before, from the day that I appointed judges over my people Israel: and I will give thee rest from all thy enemies. And the Lord foretelleth to thee, that the Lord will make thee a house. And when thy days shall be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house to my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son: and if he commit any iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men. But my mercy I will not take away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before my face. And thy house shall be faithful, and thy kingdom for ever before thy face, and thy throne shall be firm for ever. According to all these words and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak to David.

And David went in, and sat before the Lord, and said: Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far? But yet this hath seemed little in thy sight, O Lord God, unless thou didst also speak of the house of thy servant for a long time to come: for this is the law of Adam, O Lord God.

These prophecies are fulfilled in Christ, Who is King of Israel ("Christ" means "Anointed One," and the anointing referred to is the anointing King David received). Our Lord, though, is not only the ruler of the restored Davidic Kingdom (the Church), but is the King of Kings -- the King of All. The only way for peace to have a chance in this world is for all to see Him for Who He is: the King before Whom we must bow and Whom we must obey.

Though this Feast is a new one, promulgated by Pope Pius XI in 1925 in his Encyclical Quas Primas, it is a most awesome and important one! Vive Christus Rex!

On this day, we pray for the conversion of all to Christ, and for all governments to recognize Him as King and conform their laws to His teachings. This is the only way to peace!

Apocalypse 19:15-16:
And out of his mouth proceedeth a sharp two-edged sword, that with it he may strike the nations. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of God the Almighty. And he hath on his garment and on his thigh written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Today you may receive a plenary indulgence by praying the Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart, going to Confession, and receiving the Eucharist. We beg God to bring all people to Him and to be our King. Read more about this on the page about Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. There will be a Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament after Mass, too.

If you haven't consecrated your home by Enthronement of the Sacred Heart, today is another perfect day to do so! If you've already done so, it is a good day to renew the consecration!

A beautiful prayer for the day, one originally meant for the Feast of Corpus Christi, but which is also perfect for the Feast of Christ the King:

O sweet Saviour and Redeemer of mankind, Jesus Christ, Who in the impenetrable designs of Thine infinite wisdom bearest with the audacity of the impious and sufferest the violence of the wicked, reserving to Thyself the sovereign right of judging the impious man and his perverse works, turn Thy merciful regard upon Thy children, who in the blindness of their hearts have turned from Thee in rebellion. With the eyes of a Father, and with the power of the sovereign King of the Universe, stretch forth Thy hand to bless and regenerate modern society, which is rebelliously turning its back upon Thee, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords. Be moved to compassion for Thy people, whom Thou hast purchased with Thy Blood, regenerated with Thy grace, and exalted with Thy love. Thou hast given them true liberty, Thou hast called them to the inheritance of thy Father, Thou hast numbered them among Thy brethren; but in the delirium of their rebellion they have preferred the slavery of Satan, and live in abject misery, without joy, without hope.

O my Lord Jesus Christ, King of eternal glory, restorer of all things in heaven and on earth, supreme and omnipotent, who with infinite wisdom reunitest at Thy feet things scattered and dispersed; enlighten the Kings of the earth, the rulers of nations; instil Thy spirit into all civil institutions, into every form of government, into laws and armies; grant that all the powers of earth may recognize in Thee the majesty of the eternal God, the source from which all authority is derived; illuminate the nations that they may understand that Thou art the origin of rights and duties, that it is through Thee that the Kings of the earth rule, and that it is to Thee that Kings and people alike owe obedience. O most sweet Jesus, Tho hast deigned to descend into this valley of tears, and to dwell with us, suffering and dying for the salvation of us sinners, and who in an excess of charity hast set up Thy abode in the midst of men, hidden under the sacramental species, and who in the fullness of the Godhead, corporally present in our tabernacles, makest Thyself the food and life of our souls; oh, receive the humble but sincere and profound homage of our hearts, offered in reparation for the falling away of the rebellious. We firmly believe in Thee and all that the faith infused into our hearts by the Holy Spirit has revealed to us about Thee. We see in Thee the beginning and the end of all existing things, we adore Thee as the one true God, we wish to live only for Thee and in Thy service. Do Thou, O Lord, save our brethren, reunite the scattered members of modern society gone astray, that we as brethren may together be one with Thee, as Thou art one with Thy Father in Heaven. May Thy will be done by all and in everything-. May Thy Majesty shine forth on the throne of thy earthly dominion, and the world confess Thee to be the true Son of God, through Whom all things were created.

O Jesus, God of love, set free from his chains Thy Vicar, the successor of Peter; re-establish him in the exercise of that liberty which Thou Thyself didst give him, together with the supreme keys, that he might effectually carry on Thy work of regenerating mankind; and so hasten on that longed-for day, in which Thou wilt be glorified by the return of Society to its paternal home. Gather together, O King of the nations, the sheep and the lambs under the care of the one shepherd. O Lord, do not abandon us; we are Thy children, we love Thee; recognize us still as thy children, unworthy, yet ever Thine; save us, and together with us, save Kings, Rulers, and Nations. Amen.

And for a litany -- a most complete and intense litany -- The Golden Litany is a good one for this feast.

And now, a hymn for the day -- Christus Vincit -- sung by the Cappella Victoria Jakarta, and conducted by Sabrina Pugliano:


Christus vincit,
Christus regnat,
Christus, Christus imperat

Laudate Dominum, laudate omnes gentes
collaudate eum omnes populi laudate

Christus vincit,
Christus regnat,
Christus, Christus imperat

Quoniam confirmata est super nos misericordia eius
et veritas Domini
manet in aeternum

Christus vincit,
Christus regnat,
Christus, Christus imperat

Gloria Patri et Filio
et Spiritui Sancto
Sicut erat in principio et nunc
et semper
et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Christus vincit,
Christus regnat,
Christus, Christus imperat
Christ conquers,
Christ reigns,
Christ, Christ commands.
 
O praise the Lord, all ye nations:
praise ye Him, all ye people.
 
Christ conquers,
Christ reigns,
Christ, Christ commands.
 
For His mercy is confirmed upon us:
and the truth of the Lord
remaineth forever.
 
Christ conquers,
Christ reigns,
Christ, Christ commands.
 
Glory be to the Father and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.   
As in the beginning, is now and always
and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen.
 
Christ conquers,
Christ reigns,
Christ, Christ commands.

See also the Queenship of Mary (31 May).



Note: In the Novus Ordo, this Feast was moved from the last Sunday in October to the last Sunday of the Season after Pentecost, which is the Sunday before Advent Sunday. The effect of this is to interrupt the relationship between the reign of Christ with His Saints, who are commemorated en masse on 1 November, and the necessity of our recognizing His Kingship now, during this "thousand years" of the Church Age. With the Feast moved to the very last Sunday in the Time After Pentecost, it leads one to believe that Christ isn't King now, and that all persons and nations don't need to recognize Him as King now -- but that He will be recognized as King only at the end of time when He reveals Himself at His Second Advent. In other words, the moving of the Feast symbolically defeats the very purpose of the Feast, which is to not only honor the very fact of His Kingship, but to pray for the conversion of all people and nations to His Church so that souls will be saved and the social order will conform to the moral law.


This page is dedicated to my Dad, who died on the Feast of Christ the King, 2012.
If you are reading this, please say an Ave for his soul.

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